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Zabusinnsir:Grammar
The Zabusinnsir language is a fairly , language. The standard sentence structure is and this is rather rigid. It is a language, meaning pro-nouns needn't be used if obvious; similarly, almost any affix may be left off when context allows. Nouns All nouns have an inherent gender and can be optionally marked for several other things. Number The Zabusinnsir language uses a singulative number system. That is, the basic, unmarked, form of a noun is the and the singular form is marked. Number is marked first. The following examples use the word meaning: person. Case There are a large number of cases in the Zabusinnsir language. Case is marked last. The following examples use the words meaning: liege, lord, etc., meaning: house, abode, etc., meaning: spring(time), freshness and meaning: small boat, skiff, sloop, etc.. Other These are the markers which are for neither number nor case. "Other" markers come before all other markers and are marked in the order they appear here. The following examples use the words meaning: light and meaning: child. Of course, a noun cannot be both augmentative and diminutive at the same time so these two markers will never appear on the same word. However, in some slang expressions, the two will occur together - this is considered ungrammatical and generally frowned upon. Gender Nouns referring to things for which it makes sense can have gender marked (in which case it is marked before number). Examples of words which this can be done with are person, child, dog, etc. The markers are the same as those for adjectives. For example, child+FEM would mean "girl" and , "boy" child+MASC. * This overrides the inherent gender of the word. Personal Pronouns There are four person words which are combined with standard noun gender and number affixes to create the personal pronouns. 1 The fourth person is the and corresponds to the English "one" as in "One shouldn’t be too quick to judge." Adjectives Adjectives agree with the noun they are modifying in gender, number and case. Gender Gender is marked first. Number Marked after gender. The markers for number are the same for adjectives as the noun markers. Case Case is marked last, as with nouns; however, unlike with nouns, adjectives have only six different markers. Comparatives & Superlatives Adjectives may also be marked with comparative/superlative markers which are placed just before those for case. For all but the superlative (''-ngõ-''), :if the adjective is marked as Nominative (''-fõ''), :: the noun being compared to is in the accusative; or :if the adjective is marked as Accusative (''-lh(a)), :: the noun being compared to is in the nominative. In both instances, a verb is required. '' (to be) is the most basic; however, other verbs, such as (to become), are also common. Verbal Adjectives Verbal adjectives are a small class of words somewhere between the two classes Adjectives and Verbs. They may behave either as verbs or as adjectives. When they are used as adjectives, no verb is required. Verbs Verbs have a large number of possible affixes and can become extremely long. Firstly, they agree with the gender, number and person of their subject. NB: In casual speech, rules are fairly lax and verbs needn't be affixed with person, gender or number markers if the speaker thinks it already evident enough. For instance, if the subject of a verb is specified as singular female then the number and gender affixes are not required on the verb as they can be assumed to be singular and female. Person 1 The fourth person is the and corresponds to the English "one" as in "One shouldn’t be too quick to judge." 2 The third person affix, ''-qe-'', is often reduced to ''-qa-'' – and then affected by further phonological processes. Gender Marked after person. Number Marked after gender. The markers for number are the same for verbs as the noun markers. Voices, Tenses, Aspects and Moods The large majority of verb affixes fall into one of these categories. Words used in the following examples: * - to walk * - to bite * - a dog * - to wash (without object, "to wash oneself"; with object, "to wash OBJECT") * - to go * - a house * - a child * - a day *:→ - daily; every day (lit. "many days also") * - to do * - to smile NB: English translations, especially for mood examples, may be at times inadequate explanation; the accompanying notes should shed light on anything left in doubt by the translation. 1 There is no grammatical in the Zabusinnsir language; however, imperfect aspects such as the progressive, perfect, etc. can perform its various roles. 2 This form may find use in instances where there are several people around and one wishes to be explicit as to which of these people is the target of the command. Non-finite forms Words used in the examples below: * - to go * - to read * - a book * - a girl * - to smile * - to fall Verb-/Adjective-Combining Form Used before the verb which it is to be combined with. This can be used to express purpose or some value judgement of some action. * All affixes are attached to the main verb rather than the combining-verb. * In example one, the verb (to go) is used, expressing purpose of the motion; this tends to work for most verbs of motion. * In example two, the (to be liked) is used, expressing a fondness for the action of reading. Noun-Combining Form Placed after the noun which it is to be combined with; performs the function of a . * Example one shows use with transitive verbs; example two, with intransitive. *: In example one, the noun modified would be the object of the verb in a standard sentence (sitsaqetcedjajeqa ful - "she read the book again and again") *: In example two, the noun modified would be the subject of the verb in a standard sentence (yuaraqetcedjagõ sayiacadj - "the girl always smiles") * Note that if used as an argument to another verb, the noun takes the second case marking on top of the first. *: e.g. thukav fulalhalh sitsaqetcedjajeqagono (I like the book she read again and again) *: e.g. langadzu fulalhalõ sitsaqetcedjajeqagono (the book she read again and again fell (and is still fallen)) Nominalised Form Used to create the noun form of a verb phrase. Other Affixes These affixes are not specific to one part of speech, although their meaning may differ depending on the part of speech they are attached to. They appear after all verb suffixes, but before number and case affixes on nouns. Demonstrative Pronouns Much like the personal pronouns, there are several bases to which standard noun number and gender markers are added. There is a three-way distinction for the object's position (be it physical, temporal, psychological or otherwise): * (near speaker); * (near addressee); and, * (near neither speaker nor addressee).